Gingerbread Houses

Weekly Smile 81

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

It’s hot as blazes here where I live — heat index of 108 even at night — so, naturally, my thoughts turn toward Christmas. Well, to be honest, I think about Christmas a lot anyway. It’s my favorite holiday, and because my family always celebrated in a big way, we have lots and lots of wonderful memories and traditions that we still enjoy. I always smile when I think about any of them. I always smile just thinking about Christmas. I listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas movies all year long, and I have a website devoted exclusively to that holiday. If you’d like to visit, here’s the link: “Merry Christmas, World!”

Anyway, one thing that made me smile this week was this picture I took of this gingerbread house. I didn’t construct it. A friend of mine did: a man who had always wanted to make a gingerbread house, but never had the opportunity as a child and evidently didn’t feel it was a seemly thing to an adult man to do. But a few years ago, at the age of 54, he decided to purchase a kit and build himself a gingerbread house. I was so happy that he took that plunge. He enjoyed it immensely, and when it came time to deconstruct (i. e. eat) it, he made sure I was there and shared it with me. The photo still makes me smile.

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To participate in ‘Weekly Smile’ visit “Trent’s World.”

Merry Christmas in Verse

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

Christmas TreasuresK'S GINGERBREAD -- TIGHT TRIM

Gingerbread and stockings …
Christmas trees and holly …
Loving friends and family …
Peace and hope and laughter …
These belong to Christmas.

God’s rich love for mankind …
Word made flesh incarnate …
Coming for just one purpose …
Dying that I could have life …
Christmas belongs to me!

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Longing For Them Now

CHRISTMAS CAT - SEARS - 1962 - LARGERBright flashes of blissful moments,
Fluttering pages of Christmas memories
Drifting through my mind.

Pages of memories of childhood beam
With living, expectant Christmas dreams.
Longing for them now.

Remembering how each page was able to ignite
My imagination, which brought each one to life.

Oh, happy, happy days!
Bright daydreams and wishes,
Make-believing magic,
Found within the pages –
The Christmas catalogs.

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Who Is This Babe of Bethlehem?

MARY, BABY, LAMB - EDITEDAt His birth,
A tiny, helpless child;

At His death,
A lamb so meek and mild;

At His grave,
A conqueror supreme;

At His coming,
Universal King!

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Christmas Cinquain

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Carols:
Floating music,
Making merry sound waves,
Singing happy tidings from God
To man.

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Stockings
Hung with great care.
Tots on best behavior
Wake on Christmas morn to find them
All filled.

# 3

Kissing
‘Neath mistletoe,
Icing Christmas cookies,
And hanging lights with tinsel bright
Make fun.

# 4

Christmas:
I wonder why
Some call it by false names.
It’s sole identity resides
In Christ.

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What Will Christmas Bring?

MANGER AND CROSS - NO WORDS gold“What will Christmas bring, Mom?”
“Why, Son, ’twill bring you lots of toys and joys.”
“What else will Christmas bring, Mom?”
“Well, fun and games with other girls and boys.”

“But later on in life, Mom,
Will Christmas mean a lot when I am grown?”
“Oh, yes, it will mean more, Son.
For as you grow, a great truth you’ll be shown.

“You’ll learn that Jesus came, Son,
Not just to be a babe in manger sweet,
But to grow up a strong man,
Horrible death and suffering to meet.

“He came to take our sin, Son
And pay the price for it on Calvary.
So God could look upon us all
And shout, ‘From sin and all its curse you’re free!’”

“But I love the little babe, Mom.
I don’t want to think He died for me.”
“That’s what makes Christmas grand, Son:
That Jesus came and died to set us free.”

“You mean, the little baby, Mom?
He had to die and never live again?”
“No, Son, on Resurrection Day,
He rose victorious o’er death for all men.

“This truth of Christmas time, Son –
I now think you begin to understand.
It was the birth of death to sin,
And of eternal life for every man.”

~
STAR & PATH OF LIGHTHis Star

Wise astrologers did travel from the East.
“We saw His star and followed to His place of peace.
We bowed ourselves before Him there on bended knees
And offered homage to the Babe, Creation’s King.”

Throughout the heavens, multitudes of brilliant stars
Have burned for centuries and led men near and far.
But only one celestial light can guide the heart,
And men who would be wise still follow Jesus’ star.

~~~

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WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Contrast

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

Thought I’d do three photos this time around, and for some reason my contrast detector zeroed in on Christmas.

The first shot is a picture of a favorite gingerbread house in brilliant color, but I was intrigued by how the contrast of light and dark seemed more pronounced when I turned the picture to sepia. I loved it, so it’s my first offering.

K'S GINGERBREAD -- TIGHT TRIM - SEPIA

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Next up is my bathroom Christmas rug from this last Christmas. I fell in love with this rug the moment I saw it, and it was primarily because of the gorgeous contrast of colors.

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And thirdly: What to me is the biggest contrast of all — my azaleas blooming in deepest winter against the Christmas lights on my front porch.

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http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/contrasts/

 

 

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Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Rainbow Colors

| Sandra Pavloff Conner

The rules say these “rainbow”  photos have to have at least 4 strong colors, so I think these make the grade:

This first photo is one I took of the first gingerbread house built by a good friend. He had always wanted to build a gingerbread house, but never had an opportunity as a child. Finally, in his early fifties, he decided it was time to make the dream come true. I commemorated the event with a number of photos, and we ended up using one on his personalized Christmas cards that year. I changed the background to blue and added falling snow, and it was the perfect card for him. But this is the original photo in its natural state.

ks-gingerbread-tight-trim1

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This is a picture of the main hallway of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic School in my hometown. They have so many students from different nations attending the school that they have hung a flag from every nation in the world in that hallway. They definitely present a rainbow of colors. Beneath the flags are the pictures of every graduation class from the beginning of the school in 1912. 

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This photo is of a good friend who does puppet theater, including making her own puppet costumes, sets, and stages. I took this picture for the back cover of her book “Puppets and More,” and I love the vibrant colors.

SHY & PUPPETS smaller

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To participate in the challenge, visit Cee at her site at this address:
http://www.ceephotography.com/2013/02/26/cees-fun-foto-challenge-rainbow-colors-must-have-at-least-4-strong-colors/